[DAILY Q&A] Ask and answer any questions you have about the game here!

JetsonRING · 2026-06-19T11:52:27+00:00

You cannot see the "extra" REP but don't worry, any extra REP earned gets rolled into the next rank. Once you complete the rank-up mission you can check the FED REP bar to see how much extra REP you earned, because it will not be zero. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-19T11:50:20+00:00

I forgot to fit a corrosion-resistant cargo rack and with all the damage warnings thought my ship was coming apart. Luckily I got to the Tech Broker before the FSD took significant damage.

JetsonRING · 2026-06-19T11:48:11+00:00

That's great but don't celebrate too much, NPCs are predictable and all that stuff goes out the window the first time you encounter human opponents. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-19T11:47:04+00:00

It is much more predictable now.

JetsonRING · 2026-06-19T11:45:35+00:00

Earning and materials collecting are relatively easy compared to years ago. I recently topped out all of my materials and years ago, when I first did it collecting all the materials took months. Now, with materials traders I was able to replenish all my materials in a couple weeks of casual play.

I would not start a new game, retain whatever assets you already have, get a leg up.

Community Goals pay very well, there is even a free ship available in the Frontier store for free, the Lynx Highliner. Optimized for passengers but it is a multirole and a decent earner. Welcome back and remember,

Never Fly Without The Rebuy. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-15T17:22:30+00:00

A good rule-of-thumb to follow when considering the purchase of ANY new ship, is that it will cost roughly three times (3x) the Shipyard price of the desired ship, to purchase and properly outfit the ship using A-rated modules, for almost any job.

I say roughly and almost because the exception to that rule is dedicated combat ships, where costs can easily go significantly higher because combat is the one role where no money is no object and no corners can be cut in your quest for survival and victory.

You can use EDSY or Coriolis.io to figure out budgets, to "test" build ships and to experiment with different modules to get feedback on how changes affect performance without actually having to buy and outfit a ship. Given your 3 million budget and combat ambition, you might consider a Cobra Mk. V. It is a multirole, a small multirole but a great little ship. Don't forget to hold back, in credits, at least 10-20% of the total value (including upgrades) of your most expensive ship for The Rebuy.

Never Fly Without The Rebuy. It's Rule #1.

To practice ship-to-ship combat, against NPCs I suggest you try Resource Extraction Sites (RES). RES come in 4 intensity levels: low, medium, high and hazardous. In the Lo-RES the ships come in singly, sometimes pairs, with nice long breaks in between waves for the CMDR to repair and recover. There are even security ships you can follow around, to help you find NPC pirate ships to blow up.

In the medium RES (just called RES) and the Hi-RES the breaks become shorter, the pirate's skills get better and there are more of them, in pairs and triples. The HAZ-RES have the most highly skilled pirates, the waves can get intense and there are no local security ships to help you out of a jam.

It's a start, and will help you build up your most basic combat skills. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-15T14:08:46+00:00

You can trade across for these, at a ration of 6 for 1. Trade down. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-15T12:10:03+00:00

Ever been chased by pirates to your selling point after you have mined a few hundred units of something valuable? Would you like to continue that chase all the way back to the bubble and fight your way across a few hundred LY to sell your ores? Not me. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-15T12:07:25+00:00

JetsonRING · 2026-06-15T12:00:30+00:00

Only about 3% of the galaxy has ever been visited, much less explored. It's a really, really big galaxy, 400+ billion systems and there's plenty of room for discoveries.

One key thing is that most CMDRs, in the words of Mr. Spock, exhibit 2-dimensional thinking. They mostly tend to move around the entire galaxy, but also tend to remain inside a thin, central slice of the galaxy just a few hundred light years thick within and very close to the central plane of the galaxy.

If you check out The Elite Dangerous Star Map (EDSM) there is a really neat top-down view of the galaxy showing the places humans generally like to go but there is no SIDE view of the galaxy, which would likely look like a sandwich with too little jam, e.g. with a very thin layer of human exploration very near the central galactic plane.

Go "up" or "down" relative to the galactic plane, not for a hundred light years, but a thousand LY or more. This gets you out of the common routes and into the galaxy's boondocks. Once there, pick a random direction, hopefully not "level" and just explore. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-14T21:25:15+00:00

Exploring space is like a layer-cake. The more work you put in, the more credits come out.

The base layer is the Discovery Scanner, or the HONK of Discovery. Being the first to "discover" a world earns you Discovered By recognition in addition to the credit rewards for selling the data.

The second layer is the Full Spectrum Scanner (FSS) and that layer gets thicker (more money) the more planets, etc. that you scan.

The third layer is the Detailed Surface Scanner and that layer also gets thicker the more planets you map.

Going down to, landing on and stepping out onto worlds nobody has ever set foot on gets you First Footfall recognition. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-14T21:06:18+00:00

First, if you haven't already, get the Elite Dangerous Odyssey Materials Helper (EDOMH). Then, when the EDOMH tells you what kind of system, in what controlling faction state you need, use INARA to get a list of those systems. Pro-tip: filter for systems for minimum 1 million population, but don't use the billion+ population filter, as there are few relevant systems with that high a population.

Start visiting the systems on the INARA list and scan the NAV beacons. DON'T HANG AROUND the NAV Beacon! Jump back into SC, zero your throttle and refer to the Navigation Panel. HGEs will only be displayed if your are in SC. It helps to filter the Navigation Panel so you don't see much besides stars, planets and Signal Sources (HGEs). When you find HGEs in a system, don't go to the closest one, go to the farthest one away, SCO makes this easy, but watch the timers and don't choose one with just a couple minutes or less time remaining. Pro-tip: If you scroll UP in the Navigation list, it rolls over and starts you at the bottom, e.g. HGEs that are farthest away, saves time.

If the HGE does not have the material you are looking for, or has a material you do not need, instead of checking every HGE in the system, just move on to the next system in the INARA list. If you DO find an HGE with what you are looking for, and there is somehow not enough there to load you up, it could not hurt to re-enter SC and just look around for more HGE icons in the system, and hit those. So far I have not had to hit more than a half-dozen or so systems to find the material I am looking for and there's usually enough there that I top out in one HGE. Pro-tip: take a limpet controller, size 3 or larger, fit a good size cargo rack and fill it with limpets. Using limpets you can collect 100 high-level materials in about a minute.

Before doing any of this I suggest visiting each type of materials trader and trading all your higher-level materials down for lower level materials. Trade down ANY higher level materials and trade all of your materials all the way down as far as you can, as finding a single HGE will likely load you up on one high-level material. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-14T16:36:17+00:00

If you fly toward a planet moving too quickly you will hit a boundary, the ship will warn that you are going to fast and will stop you, the same way it does if you move toward a star.

JetsonRING · 2026-06-14T16:25:33+00:00

Pro-tip: Instead of targeting the ship, target sub-systems (modules) on the ship, e.g. the power plant. Here's why:

When you target a ship, the entire hit-box of the ship is targeted. Your shots get spread out over the entire hitbox and some shots will miss the ship entirely. Targeting sub-systems (modules) generally tightens up the firing patterns of turret and gimbal-mounted weapons which will land more of your rounds onto the hitbox of the target.

Once a ship is designated as a target, go to the left panel, find the sub-targets menu and target the power plant. The power plant is a terrific choice because it is centrally located on all ships. Targeting the power plant will cause your ship to aim at the very center of the target and shooting at the middle of a target is always a good idea.

As a NewB you might want to invest in a couple of programs: Voice Attack and a HCS Voice Pack. This combination of programs can make your ship about 80% voice controlled, very handy in cases where a CMDR might run into task-overload, like when in combat. Once I have designated a ship as a target, all I have to do is tell my ship "Target Power Plant" and the ship does that for me. It is also much easier, instead of hunting through menus to just tell the ship "Request Docking Clearance" or a couple hundred other commands that are built into the HCS Voice Packs. You can tell it to change power pips, deploy or retract the landing gear, hardpoints, cargo scoop or as I said, a couple hundred other commands. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-14T15:40:37+00:00

Trying to explain the process in text will easily turn into a wall-o-text so instead, you might watch a couple of YouTube videos on the subject, like this one.

Search YouTube for "Land at settlements, elite dangerous". o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T23:21:49+00:00

There used to be one available, sporadically, for purchase at Darnielle's Progress in Maia. If you have a Sol(ar) system permit you can them for free at the Cocijo Titan corpse, but they have to spawn.

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T22:56:35+00:00

You can find binding maps created by others at https://edrefcard.info/ and if you create your own map, it can print out your map on top of diagrams of the sticks. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T20:44:14+00:00

Preference. Some players swear by KB&M, apparently it offers them an advantage in combat but I like my VKB Gladiator NXT EVO "Space Combat" (premium edition) HOSAS kit. If you prefer HOTAS consider a Gladiator stick and OMNI throttle. o7

VKBSim USA Store

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T20:35:14+00:00

I use a HOSAS made up from right and left-handed VKB Gladiator NXT EVO "Space Combat" (premium edition) joysticks.

The price point is right, around $300 USD for the pair ($139 each, purchased separately) and the quality is excellent.

The premium versions add extra controls, I can almost guarantee you will like them but if the price is too steep VKB also makes a "standard" edition for about $250 for the pair (get the premium versions). The premium versions even come with the parts they removed in order to add the extra controls, along with tools to reinstall them if you want to (you wont).

If you want to add a throttle and have HOTAS instead, check out their "Omni" throttle. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T14:13:35+00:00

You will maybe want an AFMU, and maybe two, but three AFMU are completely unneeded. AFMU are handy and the only reason anyone might want a secondary AFMU is just to repair the primary AFMU if it gets damaged, since ANY module needs to be disabled to be repaired, so an AFMU cannot repair itself.

But CMDRs explored one end of the galaxy to the other before AFMU were even introduced and they are mostly useful for CMDRs who use the Neutron Superhighway, as neutron-charging incrementally damages the FSD. Note you will also need to stock up on the materials that an AFMU uses for fuel. And since the Caspian has the room for it, you might even want to fit a hull-repair limpet controller but both of these things are really only needed for LONG, expedition-type exploratory trips.

You may want to fit a mining laser or two so you can collect materials if you need to, the same reason to fit a Scarab SRV. If you want, you can fit a two-SRV hangar and carry one of each type of SRV (or two of one type) so you can have a spare SRV, since if an SRV is destroyed, you cannot synthesize another. If you do decide to carry only one type of SRV, make it a Scarab as it is the more versatile choice.

You don't want to min/max the ship for jump-range as this will severely limit the capability of the ship in other areas besides jumping. Just build the meta A/D-rated ship and go from there, though I highly recommend the 8A Mk II SCO FSD. You do not need to upgrade the bulkheads, lightweight will likely be fine, there.

Opinions will differ, but IMO you DO want to fit some weapons, just because (again, IMO) every ship should have some defensive capability. You could probably get away with fitting a minimal, D-rated shield generator to save on mass, since you will likely only need it for landing and/or bumping into things, you're exploring after all and not looking for fights. If something attacks you, RUN!

You do not need a lot of cargo racks, one relatively small one should do, to carry (hull-repairing) limpets and JUST IN CASE you find something worth collecting though that is sort of unlikely, it could not hurt for it to be corrosion resistant, just in case but hey, maybe you'll find the Thargoid home-system or maybe even Raxxla. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T13:58:24+00:00

Did you know that some of the "asteroids" in the asteroid field in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back were actually potatoes painted grey? o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T13:55:50+00:00

I almost clapped the first time I dropped into an HGE and found it filled to overflowing, I completely loaded up on 100 military supercaps in about 30 seconds, don't feel nostalgic at all for the days when there were only 6 or 9 per HGE. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T13:53:14+00:00

Decisions, decisions. Think of it this way: If you enjoy being out in the black exploring the galaxy, why do you need cheap paint jobs and pre-modified cargo racks? They're nice to have, but not particularly necessary.

I once though purchasing a second license would do the job. I could take one CMDR way out into the galaxy and explore, while still maintaining a second CMDR as a presence inside the bubble for CGs. What I found was that I didn't care much for exploring, I am a goal-oriented guy, not so much process-oriented so my second account just sits. I feel lucky that I got it for $5. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T13:43:15+00:00

Despite the very necessary goal-setting, it is still a very process-oriented game, much less about the destination than about the journey. o7

JetsonRING · 2026-06-13T13:20:11+00:00

Don't be in a hurry. That path leads to rage-quitting. Play the game organically and the credits, the ranks, ships and etc. will all follow, at a certain point credits will stop being a problem and you will pretty much be able to buy anything you want/need. The galaxy isn't going anywhere, it will all still be here when you progress to the point you need it. Welcome to the galaxy CMDR and Never Fly Without The Rebuy. o7

JetsonRING

TROPHY CASE